• Nutrition Research and Practice
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.402-411
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• 2017

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: The role of a school's nutrition environment in explaining students' eating behaviors and weight status has not been examined in an Asian setting. The purpose of this study was to create a school nutrition environment index and to pilot test the index in elementary and middle schools in urban South Korea. SUBJECTS/METHODS: This study used a mixed-methods approach. Environment assessment tools were developed based on formative research, which comprised literature reviews, in-depth interviews, and focus group discussions. Key elements from the formative research were included in the assessment tool, which consisted of a structured survey questionnaire for school dietitians. Fifteen school dietitians from 7 elementary and 8 middle schools in Seoul completed the questionnaire. RESULTS: The formative research revealed four main sections that guided a summary index to assess a school's nutrition environment: resource availability, education and programs, dietitians' perceptions and characteristics, and school lunch menu. Based on the literature reviews and interviews, an index scoring system was developed. The total possible score from the combined four index sections was 40 points. From the 15 schools participating in the pilot survey, the mean school nutrition-environment index was 22.5 (standard deviation ${\pm}3.2$; range 17-28). The majority of the schools did not offer classroom-based nutrition education or nutrition counseling for students and parents. The popular modes of nutrition education were school websites, posters, and newsletters. CONCLUSIONS: This paper illustrates the process used to develop an instrument to assess a school's nutrition environment. Moreover, it presents the steps used to develop a scoring system for creation of a school nutrition environment index. As pilot testing indicated the total index score has some variation across schools, we suggest applying this instrument in future studies involving a larger number of schools. Future studies with larger samples will allow investigation of the validity and reliability of this newly developed tool.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.130-141
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• 2011

This study was conducted to develop a nutrition education workbook to improve picky eating in children and to evaluate the effect of nutrition education using this developed workbook. The developed workbook focused on 2nd and 3rd grade students and consisted of five units. The contents included: multi-grain, vegetables (2 units), fish, and milk. The activities, including observation, and learning the roles and names of the foods, were developed mainly to increase motivation for eating a balanced diet. This workbook was developed from April to December 2008, and was applied at 15 elementary schools containing 1,674 students from April to September 2009 in Changwon City, Korea. We evaluated changes in knowledge before and after education on nutrition, eating behavior, dietary habits, and educational activities using self-administered questionnaires. The children demonstrated significant improvements in nutritional knowledge (P<0.001), eating behavior (P<0.001), and dietary habits (P<0.001). Most of the children answered that the education program was helpful and exciting. Based on these results, we believe that the developed workbook is suitable for children picky eaters, and hope it will be used in the field of child nutrition education.

• Korean Journal of Community Nutrition
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.307-322
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• 2017

Objectives: This study examined the effects of nutrition education focused on personalized daily energy requirement and food units using Food Exchange System on anthropometric, biochemical characteristics, nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude and nutrient intakes for overweight and obese in a public health center. Methods: The subjects were 60 overweight/obese women based on BMI (educated 30 vs. non-educated 30, 50~64 years). Educated group was provided individual and/or group lessons (40 min/lesson/week, 5 week), 'Introduction: obese & health', '6 nutrients and 6 food groups', 'My obesity & daily needed energy', 'Meal planning for personalized daily energy and food units using Food Exchange Systems', and 'Smart food choices'. After education, we examined the differences in anthropometric/biochemical characteristics, nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude and nutrient intakes between educated group and non-educated group. Results: After nutrition education, in the educated group, there were improvements on anthropometric/biochemical characteristics, nutrition knowledge, dietary attitude and nutrient intakes in the educated group compared to the non-educated group. We observed a decrease in the mean weight, total cholesterol (TC) and the incidence of overweight/obesity and hypercholesterolemia and an increase in the mean lean body mass. The scores of nutrition knowledge, 'Function of carbohydrate, protein, vitamin, mineral' and 'Food Sources of fat, vitamin, mineral' were increased. The scores of dietary attitudes, 'Taking a joyful meal, a leisurely meal, a balanced meal, a meal with sufficient vegetables, a meal with diversity, a meal with spicy foods, a meal with overeating' were increased. The intakes of energy, carbohydrate, fat, protein, vitamin A, thiamin, Zn and cholesterol were decreased. The scores of INQ, protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, thiamin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, folate, Ca, P, Fe, Zn were increased. Conclusions: The nutrition education focused on personalized daily energy requirement and food exchange unit using Food Exchange System for overweight and obese may improve food behavior, dietary intakes and symptoms of overweight and obese, even in a community health center.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.84-93
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• 2007

This study was carried out to see the effect of individualized diet education on the improvement of blood glucose level according to the changes of nutrient intake with the subjects of 25 people. Among 25 people who participated in diabetic education program held in Chilgok-gun public health center, Gyeongbuk, there were 15 diabetic patients(3 males and 12 females) and 10 healthy people(2 males and 8 females) and after the diet education, the results were as follows. As for clinical characteristics, the diabetic group tended to have slightly higher blood pressure than the control group, especially diastolic blood pressure of diabetic group was higher than the control group with a significant level(p<0.05). Blood glucose level measured 2 hours after the meal was higher in the diabetic group than the control group with significant level(p<0.0001). For the clinical characteristic changes before and after the diet education, the blood glucose level in the diabetic group reduced significantly(p<0.01). For the daily diet intake, intake of fat in the diabetic group increased significantly compared to the one before the education(p<0.05). When comparing the ratio of carbohydrate: protein: fat, it was changed from 72.9 : 16.2 : 12.9 before the education to 63.8 : 15.1 : 21.1 after the education. From the above results, it is necessary to perform the diet education which carries out in the health center for diabetic patients with individualized goal by stepwise way rather than as one time try, and by developing the diabetic education media which is appropriate for the patients.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.20-29
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• 2015

This study investigated the demand of nutrition education programs among preschooler's parents. Focus group interview was conducted four times with 29 parents of preschool children. Most subjects appeared to have interest in nutrition education; 'very interested' (58.6%), 'somewhat interested' (20.7%). Sources of nutrition information were 'internet' (35.1%), 'books' (21.6%), 'newspaper or magazines' (13.5%), 'family or relatives' (13.5%), 'media' (8.1%), 'preschool' (5.4%) and 'hospital or public health center' (2.7%) in order. The most frequently mentioned health problems related to dietary behavior were atopy and obesity. Major concerns for children's dietary behavior was picky eating habits, and having questions for how to deal with this problem. Most subjects had trouble with obtaining an adequate amount of dietary supplements for their children. Nutrition education for parents about food labeling and information on processed foods was in demand. Preferred methods of nutrition education for children were playing games with stickers, gardening vegetables, and participating in cooking. Attitudes toward computer-assisted education materials, one of the methods of nutrition education, appeared to be ambivalent. Some preschool parents showed negative attitudes towards exposing their children to electronic devices at an early age, whereas others showed positive attitudes. Subjects were interested in meal-planning and ways to balance nutrients for their child. Parents preferred attending professional lectures to receive reading materials or searching websites as an adult nutrition education method. Results of this study have implications on providing basic information for developing nutrition education programs for preschoolers and their parents. Future research should focus on developing nutrition education programs for both preschools and the home.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.639-650
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• 1993

The purpose of this study was to assess the nutrition education and training needs as a basis for program planning for day care providers. A sample of 239 day care teachers responded to a questionnare assessing demographic characteristics, nutrition education experiences, and measuring the level of basic knowledge of food & nutrition. Menu planning was added to the questionnarie for 158 day care center directors. The results of this study can be summarized as follows: 1) majority(92.5%) of day care teachers and 74.1% of day care directors were interested in receiving nutrition education and training programs. 2) The topics generating the greatest interest for day care teachers were good food habits, food preparation & meal planning and food sanitation. 3) As a result of measuring the level of basic nutrition knowledge, day care teachers possessed the moderate amount of knowledge about five basic food groups, cholesterol, protein containing food, fat, while they possessed the poor knowledge about vitamin and calorie. 4) Day care teachers and directors possessed a certain level of knowledge about what the good snacks are and how to teach the unbalanced diet oriented children, while they possessed a low level of knowledge about children's nutrition requirement.

• Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.153-163
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• 1999

The purpose of this study was to obtain basic data of nutrition education for obese children and to examine food habits, food behaviors, and nutrition knowledge. A convenience sample of 84(male:62, female:22) obese children was selected from "98 Children Nutrition Camp". The survey design employed a structured questionnaire. The results of this study were summarized as follows. 1. The percentage of the subjects who overestimated their body weight was higher in female compared to male. Only 35.9% of highly-obese subjects considered them as 'very fat'. The experience of weight control was higher in female than in male, and it was also higher moderately- or highly-obese subjects compared to mildly obese. 2. 64.3% of subjects reported that they regularly eat breakfast. The percentage of the subjects who indicated that they eat at regular meal time or they eat very irregularly was highest in the highly-obese subjects. 3. 34.5% of subjects reported that they eat very fast. The eating speed was slower in female compared to male, and in obese subjects. 55.4% of subjects reported that didn't eating out. 4. 80.9% of subjects had snacks, and most of them had snack between lunch and dinner. The reason the subjects eat snack was hunger. The most favorite snack was cookies. 5. The most preferred and distasteful food was meats(32.1%) and vegetables(67.1%), respectively. 6. The score of food behaviors was relatively low in most subjects. 7. The level of nutrition knowledge was in order of fair(83.1%), poor(9.6%), excellent(7.3%), and was higher in male compared to female. Consequently the results of this study showed to disagreement among food habits, food behaviors and nutrition knowledge, and feel keenly the necessity of education connecting of these. This education had to be practical education to change food behaviors.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.699-708
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• 2022

Purpose: Adequate nutrition is to be provided for normal growth and development during early childhood. Currently, childcare teachers provide lunch to most children in Korea. The purpose of this study was to investigate the portion size provided by teachers and examine the effect of education on food serving size. Methods: The subjects were childcare teachers (n = 120) in charge of children aged 3-5 years at a daycare center in Hanam-si. The survey was conducted through questionnaires which included questions on the general characteristics of the teachers, their nutritional education status, and the source of nutrition information. In addition, the portion sizes of items on the menu currently provided to children were measured and the data were analyzed. To assess the effectiveness of education in determining serving size, the subjects were randomly equally divided into two groups. In the first group (n = 60) theoretical education on nutrition and serving sizes was given, whereas in the second (n = 60), practical education on these topics was provided. Results: The difference between the actual portion size of rice and the serving size announced on the menu was observed to decrease along with the increase in the experience of the teacher, although the differences in the main dish and kimchi were higher. The gap between the serving size mentioned in the menu and the portion size distributed widened as the age of the teachers increased. Notably, the difference between the portion size and the serving size of food decreased after both practical and theoretical education. Furthermore, the effect of education on the serving size of the main dishes (p < 0.001), side dishes (p < 0.01), and kimchi (p < 0.01) was observed to be greater in the practical education group than in the theoretical education group. Conclusion: Regular education should be provided to teachers on the serving sizes mentioned in the menu, as the quantity of food served depends on the experience and age of teachers. In the case of rice, theoretical education alone sufficed to ensure a proper serving size. However, hands-on training on the main and side dishes, and kimchi would be much more helpful.

• Journal of Nutrition and Health
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.9-14
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• 1980

A total of 35 hospitals throughout Korea were surveyed for the assessment of the educational function of dietitians. The current situation and the depth of practices were diagnosed in such areas as: 1. The continuing education for the hospital dietitians 2. The characteristics of patient consultation performed by the hospital dietitians 3. Systems and methods of patient instruction practiced by the dietitians, and 4. Prospectives in establishing the nutrition education center for the in-and out-patients. The major findings are: 1. Approximately half of the hospital dietitians feel positive about the practicality of their college education for the job. Extremely small number of them are on any kind of continuing education program 2) The monthly average of only 20 patients at one hospital receive diet consultation or nutrition education service from dietitians. The 50% of the consultation cases is taken up by the patients with diabetes and various circulartory diseases followed by the tube feedings, liver and renal diseases with less frequencies 3) Not even a single hospital has an office for the diet consultation and nutrition education for the in-or out-patients. Very few hospital dietetics have educational aids and/or any feedback system to evaluate the effect of the consultation. Charting is not practiced by most dietitians leaving no record of their contributions to the patient care. 4) Although the necessity of the nutrition education center in the hospital is strong1y recognized among dietitians the progress has been blocked by such obstacles as the poor system in the hospital administration in general, short in funds, lack of preparation in the dietetics and the lack of recognition both by the hospital administration and by the dietitian themselves.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.46 no.7
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• pp.7-19
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• 2008

The purpose of this study is to provide fundamental data for development of textbooks and guides on diet education for middle school students. A survey was conducted for 250 middle school students in Daegu, who have completed the nutrition courses. The data were collected from the results of a self-administered questionnaire. The results obtained by this research are as follows: 1) For the education for dietary habit and attitude at school, more than half of students answered 'not being done'(55.1%), and 'needed'(41.1%). 2) When educating food and nutrition at school, both boys and girls preferred 'classes using media such as movies and slides'. 3) The boys wanted to learn 'proper dining etiquettes'(23.5%), and girls wanted to learn 'weight management'(43.8%) for further courses of food and nutrition(p < .001) in the educational demand analysis.